


The Browncoats Book Of Haikus And Tankas --- The Heroes

by Zucht



Category: Firefly
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2006-12-02
Updated: 2006-12-02
Packaged: 2019-04-29 13:44:36
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,678
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14473962
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Zucht/pseuds/Zucht
Summary: Haikus and Tanks that explore the characters of Firefly/Serenity





	The Browncoats Book Of Haikus And Tankas --- The Heroes

**Author's Note:**

> Note from alice ttlg, the archivist: this story was originally archived at [Firefly’s Glow](https://fanlore.org/wiki/Firefly%27s_Glow), and was moved to the AO3 as part of the Open Doors project in 2018. I tried to reach out to all creators about the move and posted announcements, but may not have reached everyone. If you are the creator and would like to claim this work, please contact me using the e-mail address on [Firefly's Glow collection profile](https://archiveofourown.org/collections/fireflysglow/profile).

The Browncoats Book Of Haikus And Tankas --- The Heroes

## The Browncoats Book Of Haikus And Tankas --- The Heroes

A/N: In August of 2006, after reading a few Haikus and Tankas that I had posted Scifi-warper challenged me to explore all of the characters of Firefly/Serenity in Haikus and Tankas. I hope you enjoy my efforts as much as I have writing them. 

AA/N: A Tanka is a longer form of a Haiku, with a 5,7,5,7,7 syllable scheme. 

**SERENITY**  
s  
s  
Haiku #5  
Serenity flies  
Through the black of tyrany  
Seeking her freedom.  
H  
h  
Haiku #11  
She fly's in beauty  
Seeking the freedom that he  
So desperately wants.  
h  
h  
Tanka #6  
She was left alone;  
Unwanted, uncared for, left  
To return to dust.  
Until her Captain saw her  
And chose to make her his own.  
t  
t  
Haiku #12  
She likes her new name.  
Although few call her it, She   
Likes being called home.  
h  
h  
Haiku #13  
The explosion hurt.  
But she didn't let him die.  
Who knew she could glide?  
h  
h  
Haiku #14  
Three understand her.  
Her Captain, her mechanic  
And the injured girl.  
h  
h  
Haiku #15  
She is very proud  
Of doing a barn swallow   
In the atmosphere  
H  
H  
**MAL**  
m  
m  
Haiku #1  
Love flies into life  
Like a gunshot in the back.  
Please shoot me right now.  
H  
H  
Haiku #3  
No one can deny  
Mal is bad in the Latin:  
Don't take his freedom.  
H  
H  
Haiku #7  
Reavers have no fear  
Except when a Shadoe falls  
Upon their dead world.  
H  
H  
Haiku #8  
Mal will not admit  
Five words that he loves to hear,  
I love my Captain!  
H  
h  
Tanka #2  
Mal cannot admit  
His love for Inara yet,  
Her career is in  
The way, she's a Companion:  
Sharing his love's no option.  
T  
T  
Tanka #7  
The war was bloody,  
Men died along with their faith;  
Nobody was left whole.  
Mal was left with nothing else  
But to find Serenity.  
t  
t  
Tanka #8  
Her laughter echoes  
Through out his body and soul.  
Everybody knows  
What he tries to bury deep:  
Inara has claimed his heart.  
t  
t  
Haiku #16  
Bullets and knives don't  
Scare Mal. However, brown eyes  
Spin his life about.  
h  
h  
Haiku #17  
A bullet did not  
Bother him as much as her  
Leaving the ship did.  
h  
h  
Haiku #18  
His aim has never  
Failed, his courage undaunted;  
So why run from her?  
h  
h  
Haiku #19  
The Black is his life,  
There is peace and solitude;  
Except from his ghosts.  
h  
h  
Haiku #20  
He smiles in his bunk,  
His crew is his family;  
One even more so.  
h  
h  
Haiku #21  
"Do what's right." Ma said.  
"Especially when it's hard,  
Do your Mama proud."  
h  
h  
Haiku #22  
The next job has come  
With it's usual outcome;  
Nothing comes easy.  
h  
h  
Haiku #23  
Mal dreams of a time  
When his freedom is not sought;  
Holding quicksilver.  
h  
h  
Haiku #24  
The Captain's motto  
Is: We work before we play.  
Words to exist by.  
H  
H  
**INARA**  
i  
i  
Tanka #9  
She knows her job well;  
Taking away loneliness  
In exchange for coin.  
Why can she never accept  
That which she pretends to give?  
t  
t  
Tanka #10  
The Guild was her life  
Until she met a Rouge with  
Piercing eyes and His  
Basis beliefs in freedom  
And living without using.  
t  
t  
Haiku #25  
Dreams rob her of sleep,  
Afterimages haunt her  
Of his sad wry smile.  
h  
h  
Tanka #11  
He infuriates  
Her with his unwavering  
Belief that no one  
Should enslave themselves for coin;  
Love should be given.  
t  
t  
Haiku # 26  
A cup of hot tea  
Soothes many a troubled mind,  
But not loneliness.  
h  
h  
Haiku #27  
She was embarrassed;  
Book had brought her dinner, she  
Had expected Mal.  
h  
h  
Haiku #28  
As Ambassador  
She opened many doors; Mal's  
Is not excluded.  
h  
h  
Haiku #29  
Grace defines her life;  
Speech, movement, manners and poise.  
Grace is an effect.  
h  
h  
Haiku #30  
She enjoys the dance,  
Mal leads, then she leads, never  
Ceasing in their dance.  
h  
h  
Haiku #31  
Mal likes her body,  
Even though his focus is  
Centered on her eyes.  
H  
H  
**SIMON**  
S  
S  
Tanka #1  
The darkness was real  
From horrors too dominant,  
When Simon met his  
Kaylee in the black of space:  
Her light shone through his closed heart. T  
T  
Tanka #3  
Simon is quite strong.  
Kaylee's smile melts his resolve.  
To save his sister  
He sacrificed everything,  
The `verse gave back with interest!  
T  
t  
Tanka #4  
Kaylee loves the hum  
Of Serenity's engines.  
Simon loves the hum  
Of Kaylee's sweet ardour.  
Mixed Simon's universe hums.  
T  
t  
Haiku #6  
Simon has found love,  
Love he could not imagine:  
Kaylee has fixed his heart.  
H  
h  
Haiku #4  
A smile from Kaylee  
Has cut through th blackness of  
Simon's fear locked heart.  
H  
h  
Haiku #39  
Disinfectant clean  
Once defined his passion;  
Now it's engine grease.  
H  
h  
Tanka #15  
His heart was closed off,  
Devotion to his sister  
Was his obsession.  
Nothing would get in his way;  
He fought hard, she won.  
T  
t  
Tanka #16  
Being proper was  
Him showing her his respect.  
In the black it counts  
More than she would like it to;  
He shows what he cannot say.  
T  
t  
Haiku #40  
He cannot have what  
She offers; he must defend  
His damaged sister.  
H  
h  
Haiku #41  
He's fastidious,  
It puzzles him why her feet   
Are not offensive.  
H  
h  
Tanka #17  
He's lonely and scared,  
Nothing in his life is left  
Except for River;  
His beautiful, talented,  
Troubled, sweet little sister.  
T  
T  
Haiku #42  
No one understands;  
His life is over as far  
As he can foresee.  
H  
h  
Tanka #18  
There is a lightness  
In his heart. An engine room:  
Dirty, greasy, open.  
The exact opposite of  
Where he would choose for their tryst.  
T  
t  
Haiku #43  
She shakes in his arms,  
He cries with her pain; knowing  
He can do nothing.  
H  
h  
Haiku #44  
The bullet hit him  
And he saw her becoming  
Now his protector.  
H  
H  
**KAYLEE**  
K  
K  
Haiku #9  
Her skin is so soft  
And her eyes sparkle like stars;  
Both pale to her smile.  
H  
h  
Haiku #10  
Serenity has  
Two hearts; One is quite complex,  
The other metal.  
H  
h  
Haiku #32  
Strawberries as far  
As she can see is her dream;  
And a swai doctor.  
H  
h  
Haiku #33  
Simon causes her  
To forget the aroma  
Of fresh strawberries.  
H  
h  
Tanka#12  
Engine grease stains her  
Skin, and finger nails bitten  
To the quick. Simon  
Does not mind, in fact, he seems  
To prefer her as she is.  
T  
t  
Haiku #34  
Kaylee's face smiles when   
Ever he's near, no notice   
Paid to Mal's scowl.  
H  
h  
Tanka #13  
Kaylee's body smiles  
Whenever her Simon's near,  
No one can doubt  
The depth of her feelings for   
Her special Core born doctor.  
T  
t  
Haiku #35  
An engine's hum is  
The sweetest sound in her `verse;  
Except for his laugh.  
H  
h  
Haiku #36  
Their first kiss was in  
The engine room; would have been   
More but for River.  
H  
h  
Tanka # 14  
Standards she don't meet  
Don't mean nothing to Simon;  
Kaylee is perfect  
In his eyes - where else does it  
Matter, except in his heart.  
T  
t  
Haiku # 37  
Her pout tears his heart;  
He has caused so much heartache  
To the one he loves.  
H  
h  
Haiku # 38  
Strawberries taste sweet  
So do Simon's lips upon  
Her amorous lips.  
H  
H  
**ZOE**  
Z  
z  
Haiku #39  
She detest weakness  
And has no use for backbirths  
Strength is her watchword.  
H  
h  
Haiku #40  
A gun in her hand  
Feels more natural than a  
Flower in her hair.  
H  
h  
Tanka #15  
Wash has never let  
Her down. He's always ready  
With a joke or a  
Quip to lighten her mood or  
Swoop in for a save.  
T  
t  
Haiku #41  
Mal watched her back, through  
Blood and gore; except when she  
Chose to take a mate.  
H  
h  
Haiku #42  
Love didn't change her   
Intensity, it deepened  
It if anything.  
H  
h  
Haiku #43  
Her arched eyebrows and   
Steely cold voice can cut as  
Deep as her best blade.  
H  
h  
Haiku #44  
No one touched her heart  
With the love that her husband  
Could. Good bye Hoban.  
H  
h  
Haiku #45  
With lead flying and  
Her two men by her side, she  
Will take on anyone.  
H  
h  
Tanka #16  
She wants his baby,  
Don't matter where they live or  
How. She ain't afraid  
To have something that would show   
The `verse... That they love.  
T  
t  
Tanka #17  
She stands there looking  
At his grave site. Seeing but  
Not seeing. He's gone.  
No more jokes, nor dinosaurs,  
No more hearing, "Lamby-toes".  
T  
t  
Tanka #18  
She'll hold true, she said.  
With power and muscle  
And the love of her   
Friends, she'll hold true; for  
Who else will remember him?  
T  
T  
**WASH**  
W  
w  
Haiku #46  
I am a leaf on   
The wind, watch how I soar; he  
Smiled at her and died.  
H  
h  
Tanka #19  
Nobody gets me,  
He mumbled to himself. Zo  
Comes closest to it.  
But if she didn't love me  
Would she really understand?  
T  
t  
Haiku #47  
The dinosaurs are  
Friends, to ward of loneliness  
He feels in the Black.  
H  
h  
Haiku #48  
Children? Those rug rats,  
Knee biters, takers of time.  
Maybe Zo's right.  
H  
h  
Haiku # 49  
Flying is his peace,  
Zo is his passion, no  
Peace there - he smiles wide.  
H  
h  
Haiku #50  
Flying is his life;  
His home, his income, his wife.  
Flying is his life.  
H  
h  
Haiku #51  
He landed safely.  
His last thought was of his wife;  
She was down safely.  
H  
h  
Haiku #52  
No one can touch his  
Lamby-toes; this he knew from  
Before she was his.  
H  
h  
Tanka #20  
Mal's insensitive,  
Uncaring, unruly and  
Most of the time, right.  
His worst quality is his   
Devotion to my dear Zo.  
T  
t  
Haiku #53  
Niska brought out my  
Worst, or as Mal said to me;  
I played what he dealt.  
H  
H  
**RIVER**  
R  
R  
Haiku #2  
River smiles to air,  
Madness begets Sanity;  
River is now calm.  
H  
h  
Tanka #5  
River sees planets  
Circling but never touching.  
Near than far, repeat.  
Madness has many faces,  
Like her brother and best friend.  
T  
t  
Tanka #21  
No one sees me right;  
Crazy girl, crazy girl, fly  
Away home. The doc's   
In the infirmary and   
Kaylee is ready for more.  
T  
t  
Tanka #22  
Must hide! Be quiet!  
It's still out there on his head!  
Ready to attack!   
His head will soon cave in from  
The weight of the white monster!  
T  
t  
Haiku #54  
The color red is  
Such a pretty color; he  
Looks better in red.  
H  
h  
Haiku #55  
Don't touch the floor, Kick,  
Spin, Turn, Jump, Leap, stretch; repeat. The smile has escaped!  
H  
h  
Tanka # 23  
Simon kissed Kaylee.  
Maybe now he will not dream  
Of sexin' my friend  
And start to live for his love;  
Allowing my mind to rest.  
T  
t  
Tanka #24  
Inara fights with  
Mal; it is their version of  
Courtship. No quarter  
Given, none asked. Please you two  
Quit dancing and start loving.  
T  
t  
Tanka #25  
I love to dance - I  
Am free from gravity and  
Life - Dance in the Black  
Between stars and planets - Dance -  
Dance till there is no pain.  
T  
t  
Tanka #26  
Don't hurt me! Simon!  
The thoughts aren't mine, nor the pain. I do not want it;  
Leave me alone! No needles!  
Don't hurt me! It isn't mine!  
T  
t  
Haiku #56  
Labels hide the truth.  
Be free little ones, be free.  
Be shiny and free.  
H  
h  
Haiku #57  
You are such a boob!  
Kaylee's right in front of you.  
Love - for both of us.  
H  
h  
Haiku #58  
I can kill with   
My brain, she told the big merc;  
She wasn't kidding.  
H  
h  
Haiku # 59  
Stars, space, nothingness,  
Peace, calm, no demands, solace:  
Just me and the boob.  
H  
h  
Haiku #60  
Floating with the notes,  
Listening to the music;  
Kaylee hears it too.  
H  
h  
Haiku #61  
Creatures big and strong  
Rule superior all over This Land;  
Only plastic now.  
H  
h  
Haiku #62  
Don't want it. Not now,  
Not ever! Please Simon, please  
Take the pain away.  
H  
H  
Tanka #27  
It's just an object,  
Comprehension is easy.  
It's just an object,  
Understanding is easy;  
Captain will understand soon.  
T  
T  
**BOOK**  
B  
b  
Tanka #28  
I will always serve,  
It's my nature and my  
Vocation, I serve.  
No one knows the past I serve;  
My past, my future; I serve.  
T  
t  
Haiku #63  
My past scares River,  
River scares me. She knows me  
And all my secrets.  
H  
h  
Haiku #64  
I am Shepherd Book,  
I now serve the one true God;  
He is forgiveness.  
H  
h  
Haiku #65  
I beat a lawman.  
Now he's dead, kilt threatening  
A confused young girl.  
H  
h  
Tanka # 29  
Rosemary is my  
Spice; A man can eat protein  
Cubes till Judgment Day,  
If he has some Rosemary  
To enhance his enjoyment.  
T  
t  
Haiku #66  
Mal's an instrument  
He just doesn't know it yet;  
His good works are signs.  
H  
h  
Tanka #30  
Believe in something;  
You inspire too much belief.  
Believe in yourself  
If nothing else, you have to  
Believe, it will lead the way.  
T  
t  
Haiku #67  
She's a rare beauty  
Who's tempting with out trying;  
I must forget her.  
H  
h  
Haiku #68  
The strain is welcome;  
The effort allows me to  
Forget for a spell.  
H  
h  
Haiku #69  
The gun felt good in  
My hands; Releasing death to   
The one who killed us.  
H  
H  
**JAYNE**  
J  
j  
Haiku #70  
I Gave Them What For  
I'm The Hero Of Canton  
The Man They Call Me  
Liberally adapted from Adam Baldwin's Firefly Easter egg H  
h  
Haiku #71  
Ma's orange knit hat;  
Pretty cunning don't ja think?  
It keeps my head warm.  
H  
h  
Haiku #72  
She shore is pretty  
Vera is my fav-o-rite,  
Gotta treat her right.  
H  
h  
Haiku #73  
Mal's not so tough, it's  
Easy to best him. He backs  
Down from easy fights.  
H  
h  
Tanka #31  
Now Kaylee, I've had   
My eye on her for a while.  
Had a chance to till  
That gose doc-tor and his  
Moon brained sister came aboard.  
T  
t  
Haiku #74  
I won't kill a man  
Lessen it's in a fair fight  
Fair to me at least - that is.  
H  
h  
Haiku #75  
Everyone's in a   
Hurry to get someplace else;  
Means more food for me!  
H  
h  
Haiku #76  
Moon brained girl cut me.  
Someday I'll fix her real good,  
And her brother too.  
H  
h  
Haiku #77  
I weren't in the war.  
No way I'd fight for nuthin';  
No one's really free.  
H  
h  
Haiku #78  
Kaylee's got her priss,  
But sum day she'll want a man  
And I got the parts.  
H  
h  
Haiku #79  
Moon brained kicked my ass.  
Weren't fair, tried not to hurt her;  
Won't do that again.  
H  
h  
XxxxxxxxxxxxX  
X  
x  
Tanka #37  
The show is worthless,  
And it cost too much to produce.  
There is no profit  
In quality programming,  
The vapid have more money.  
T  
T  
A/N: no collection ewould be complete without this dig at the * &^*^%*#%$!@@#$!!! that cancelled the show. XxxxxxxxxxxxX  
A/N: Don't forget, Reviews are your way of letting the authors know you appreciate their efforts.

* * *

 

 

 

 

 

 

Title:   **The Browncoats Book Of Haikus And Tankas --- The Heroes**   
Author:   **Zucht**   
Details:   **Standalone**  |  **PG-13**  |  **gen**  |  **12k**  |  **12/02/06**   
Characters:  Malcolm, Zoe, Wash, Kaylee, Inara, Jayne, Simon, River, Book   
Pairings:  M/I, K/S, Z/W   
Summary:  Haikus and Tanks that explore the characters of Firefly/Serenity   
  



End file.
